Bishop Guertin's Brooke Paquette looks to score vs. Bedford's Lyla Stein during last year's Division I title game. The two teams meet for the first time since tonight in Bedford. (Telegraph photo by TOM KING)

The busy period of the winter high school season has arrived, with a combination of big regular and post season events.

For example, tonight the Bishop Guertin High School boys and girls basketball teams visit Bedford in a major doubleheader between title contenders. The Division I top seed could be decided in the girls game alone.

In post season play, No. 5 Campbell visits No. 4 Hopkinton in the Division III boys quarterfinals.

Then move on to Saturday, when the Division I, II and III wrestling championships will be held. For locals, Division I features Nashua North and South and will be hosted by Londonderry, while Division II, hosted by Hollis Brookline, features locally the Cavs, Bishop Guertin, Alvirne, Milford, Souhegan and Merrimack. Division III Campbell will compete at Bow High School.

And bowling will have its team tournament at Strikers East in Raymond, also on Saturday.

Here’s a look:

BASKETBALL

The Division I girls hoop Game of the Year is tonight’s Bedford-Guertin contest, set to start at 8, just after the boys play at 6:30 at Bedford High School.

It’s the lastest chapter in what has been a rivalry for pretty much the last 10 years. BG lost in the 2021 finals to the Bulldogs, but won a dramatic 48-46 game almost exactly a year ago at UNH in last year’s final. The Cardinals go into this with a record of 15-0, including six wins vs. out of state opponents. The Bulldogs, meanwhile, are 14-1, their only blemish coming at the hands of Portsmouth, 55-53, back on Jan. 24. They’ve won five straight, including an impressive 78-52 win over another contending Division I team, Pinkerton.

Last year’s title game at UNH was one for the ages, as the Cards rallied from seven down with just under four minutes to play to pull out the win. They’ll rely on guards Brooke Paquette and Olivia Murray tonight, but also have center Meghan Stack, who was out all of last year, to try to help counter tough Bedford 6-2 junior center Lana McCarthy. McCarthy had 14 points and 14 rebounds in last year’s title game before fouling out in the final two minutes. Paquette, meanwhile, had 21 points.

But this BG girls team appears deeper and less reliant on one or two players.

“We’re a lot different than we were last year,” Guertin coach Brad Kreick said. “When you get Meghan back in the lineup, that’s a 6-1 kid, real skilled kid, which is a huge, huge, help.”

The boys game will be interesting, as Bedford has won 10 straight en route to a 14-1 mark, while BG (11-4) had a six-game win streak halted Tuesday by Trinity. The Bulldogs, led by junior guard Luke Soden, have the potential to be explosive offensively. But the Cards, led by seniors Matt Santosuosso, Javari Ellison and Luke Anderson, have been no slouch.

One reminder: Today’s Nashua North-Manchester Central game at North is at 4 p.m. due to the tensions over a week ago involving Nashua and Manchester student fans and boys basketball teams. Also, be reminded that only immediate family members of rostered players for both teams will be admitted and must check in at the door.

As for the postseason, No. 4 Campbell (13-4) visits No. 5 Hopkinton (13-4) in the Divison III quarters in a game the Cougars had hoped to have hosted, given their 59-57 win over the Falcons in Litchfield back on Jan. 31, part of ther current six-game winning streak. But a three way tie with Stevens removed the head-to-head tiebreaker, and Hopkinton got the higher seed.

Jackson Kanaley got the game-winning hoop in the first meeting, whie Austin McHugh was huge for Campbell with 19 points and 12 rebounds. The Cougars cruised past No. 12 Newport, 79-62 in the prelims while Hopkinton bested No. 13 Inter-Lakes in similar fashion,65-49.

The winner tonight faces the winner of No. 1 Gilford vs. No. 8 Conant on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. at Goffstown High School.

Meanwhile, the Division IV girls hoop pairings are out and Wilton-Lyndeborough is seeded No. 12 (10-8) and will be at No. 5 Newmarket (14-4) on Tuesday at 7 p.m.in the prelims. The two teams did not meet in the regular season. Regardless of the outcome, it’s a big accomplishment for the Warriors, who hadn’t fielded a varsity team the previous three seasons.

Nashua South wrestler Anthony Fernandez expects to shake a lot of hands in victory at Saturday’s Division I Meet at Londonderry. (Telegraph file photo by TOM KING)

WRESTLING

Will the area have state team champion? Probably not in Division I, as Salem is the heavy favorite.

“It’s Salem’s tourney to lose,” Nashua South coach Adam Langlois said, but added, “The kids have goals we’ve talked about all year and we feel very confident they can be achieved. We’re very excited to turn a lot of heads this weekend.”

One South wrestler, Anthony Fernandez at 182, has turned a lot of heads – especially since he wrestled in the 130s winning a title a year ago. He’s considered one of the favorites to bring home a title. North’s top wrestler has been senior Finn Mullaly, usually at 160.

Division II, though, is wide open, and two local teams look to make a big impact, Hollis Brookline and Bishop Guertin. The Cards have been tough at the heavier weights with Zach Connerty (182), Charlie Bellavance (195), and Rocco Geraci (heavyweight) having been tough all year. But the Cavs have gotten good performances, too, and have Jameson Keller at 106 and Caden Bruseo at 120, plus 138 pounder Daniel Frixione, and perhaps Hunter Crea at 145, plus HB heavyweight Ethan Strauss.

Alvirne’s Adam Cummings could challenge at 145, while Milford’s Tom Ziemeicki at 220 and Evan O’Connell at 152 are contenders.

The eventual team champion looks like it could come from any one of perhaps five schools: Goffstown, Hollis Brookline, Bishop Guertin, Milford or Spaulding.

“It’s going to be interesting,” HB coach Brian Bumpus said. “Goffstown has been tough this year. BG, too. … When you get into tournament time, it’s who is the most prepared and who’s ready to rock and roll.”

“It’s going to be a battle,” Guertin coach Paul Rousseau said. “It’s going to come down to who really wants it.”

BOWLING

The event begins at 10 a.m.at Strikers East in Raymond, with Merrimack seeded second behind top seed Keene, while Bishop Guertin is seeded fourth and Hollis Brookline sixth.

In the quarters, Keene faces the winner of the prelim between Coe-Brown and Spaulding. BG faces Stevens, Merrimack rolls vs. Winnacunnet and HB takes on No. 3 Raymond.

HOCKEY

Let’s not forget the ice, and it’s another BG-Bedford matchup Saturday as the boys teams collide at 11 a.m. at Saint Anselm’s Sullivan Arena.

The 11-3 Cards already own a 4-2 win over the Bulldogs(10-5) back on Jan. 11 at Skate 3, but last year at Sullivan the ‘Dogs knocked BG out of the Divison I tourney with a quarterfinal win.